That chapter, indeed, was formalized only recently, but its members have been active for quite a while, far outnumbering Bush administration backers at previous Veterans Day observances I have seen.

"These days, people are wise enough to separate a bad policy from those who are duty-bound to implement it," I wrote following last year's Veterans Day events in Easton. And in July, when I wrote about one antiwar protest, I focused on the Lehigh Valley chapter of Veterans for Peace.

Maybe I pay special attention to such things because I spent 81/2 years in the military. Many veterans have nothing but contempt for the Bush administration chicken hawks who lied us into the Iraq war.

So there was a parade in Allentown for Veterans Day, and it was antiwar military veterans who showed up.

John Halasovski of New Tripoli, a Vietnam veteran, was quoted as saying this of antiwar folks: "I agree with them wholeheartedly. None are against the vets. They probably support the troops more than most." (Last year, I also wrote about Halasovski.)

Elsewhere in Monday's paper, another story told of how President Bush and Vice President Cheney used Veterans Day to pretend they support military people. Bush, shedding crocodile tears, told the families of four Texans killed in combat that "your loved ones served a cause that is good and just and noble."

What cause is that? The cause of mendacity? The cause of Haliburton? The cause of subverting the Constitution that Bush and Cheney swore to uphold, as did every member of the military?

I am old enough to remember a dozen presidents, and I consider Dwight Eisenhower the best of them. Eisenhower, the general who led the Allies to victory during World War II in Europe, ended his presidency by warning the nation of its biggest threat -- the military-industrial complex.

Ike saw Haliburton coming from four decades away.

All that may be ignored by mainstream media, but not by military people. They will do their duty and they will obey orders in Iraq or anywhere else, but they are not stupid enough to think the tears of chicken hawks are genuine.

At a time of phony "support our troops" bumper-sticker propaganda, very few news outfits have reported which presidential candidate actually has the most support among people serving in the military.

Which one has more contributions from GIs than any other? As reported by the Houston Chronicle, it is the one candidate most ignored by the media: Ron Paul, a native of Pennsylvania and a military veteran who was elected to Congress from Texas.

Paul is the only presidential candidate to state he will obey the U.S. Constitution when it comes to waging war. He also is the only Republican in Congress to vote against the Iraq War Resolution in 2002.

For those who rely on mainstream media, it may come as a surprise that military people and military veterans support the one presidential candidate who bucks the chicken hawks.